The Underground Railroad: The DM has a concise plan for everything that is going to happen, and the type of characters he wants in the game.

Of course, the players never know this, and the DM never gives a hint at either. In fact, he constantly puts forth the illusion of choice. Even from the point of character building. He lays out a number of choices, but never tells you that many are the "wrong choice" for his game.
Even the theme, and feel of the game, is hidden, and the players struggle to immerse, as they try to feel it out. Without direction, Players stray too far, and are punished for not following the hidden plan. Every session is a constant struggle to follow the unwritten, and unspoken rules. Even when it reaches the point when players ask the DM "So, what does my character do" the DM continues with the illusion of choice, but nonetheless, has the PCs do, what he wants them to do.

That is a terrible excuse for having heroes fail at hopscotch, or climbng a step ladder, 5% of the time.

Take 10, is built in, and noted, to get around this kind of nonsense.

Maybe, you can have your group boil ant hills, or whatever "old school" houserules you got in place, but Take 10 exists to do the things, you specifically don't want them to do, for specifically the reason, that you don't want them to do it.

Your mastery of the shield allows you to fight with it without hindrance.
Prerequisites: Improved Shield Bash, Shield
Proficiency, Shield Slam, Two-Weapon Fighting, base
attack bonus +11.
Benefit: You do not suffer any penalties on attack rolls made
with a shield while you are wielding another weapon. Add your
shield’s enhancement bonus to attacks and damage rolls made
with the shield as if it was a weapon enhancement bonus.

I will also note that nowhere within the rules, does it specifically refer to the Shield as not being a weapon.

I find the evidence to be overwhelming, in favor of the Shield being a weapon.

Charisma as a dumping is one reason why a tough DM of ages past instituted the "Luck Check", which is a d20 based Charisma check you make when you want to see who gets the extra arrow, who the shambling mound shambles towards, or maybe whether there are some coins or a poisonous spider in the couch cushions that a PC decided to check for treasure. When the DM wants to know which PC a really nasty monster should randomly attack he or she will sometimes call for an "Ugly Off". I guess we're getting way off the original topic though.

For the whole "strapped to the arm, but not held in hand" thing, I advise you to reread the heavy steel shield description:

Ultimate Equipment wrote:

You strap a heavy steel shield to your forearm and grip it with your hand. A heavy steel shield is so heavy that you can’t use your shield hand for anything else. Whether wooden or steel, a heavy shield offers the same basic protection and attack benefits, though the two versions respond differently to some spells and effects (such as rusting grasp). A druid can use a heavy wooden shield, but not a heavy steel shield.